Fisheries Minister Diane Lebouthillier Allocates $140 Million for Pacific Wild Salmon Enhancement and Hatchery Modernization

VANCOUVER — Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard Diane Lebouthillier announced on Monday the distribution of $140 million in targeted federal investments under the Pacific Salmon Strategy Initiative (PSSI) to modernize twenty-two community-based wild salmon enhancement hatcheries and deploy real-time environmental DNA (eDNA) biological sampling networks across high-priority river systems in British Columbia and Yukon.

The investment, delivered in direct co-management partnerships with First Nations communities and local streamkeeper volunteer associations, reconstructs aging 1970s-era salmon incubation raceways with temperature-controlled water recirculation systems and automated biometric marking technology that identifies hatchery-reared fish from wild stocks.

Rebuilding Vulnerable Pacific Salmon Stocks with Modern Conservation Genetics Pacific wild salmon face mounting environmental challenges from warming river water temperatures, ocean marine heatwaves, and historic habitat fragmentation, requiring modernized conservation fish hatcheries designed to preserve genetic diversity and build climate-resilient fish stocks.

"Pacific wild salmon are the lifeblood of British Columbia's coastal ecosystems, Indigenous cultural heritage, and commercial fisheries," Minister Diane Lebouthillier said at the Capilano Salmon Hatchery in North Vancouver. "Through this $140 million investment, we are modernizing our salmon enhancement facilities with world-class genetic conservation technology, restoring natural river spawning channels, and working hand-in-hand with First Nations to ensure wild salmon thrive in Pacific rivers for generations to come."

Conservation Hatchery and River Monitoring Allocations The $140 million funding package supports:

• 22 Conservation Hatchery Modernizations: $85 million for chilled water recirculation bio-filtration and solar-powered backup aeration at facilities along the Fraser, Skeena, and Cowichan Rivers.
• Environmental DNA (eDNA) Telemetry Network: $30 million to deploy automated robotic water samplers that measure returning salmon runs without invasive physical trapping.
• Indigenous Stream Habitat Restoration: $25 million in direct grants for First Nations watershed guardians restoring gravel spawning beds and removing riverbed debris.

Commercial and sport fishing federations, Indigenous hereditary chiefs, and marine biologists commended the federal funding, highlighting that genetic-conservation hatcheries provide vital stock rebuilding for vulnerable river runs.